A Change in Perspective
by DeborahSloane
Summary: Rose is left on the beach with this OTHER Doctor. He is so much like the Doctor she loves, but he gave her no choice. How will she cope?  My turn at this! Please R&R
1. Similar Faces

**Hey! I've had this sitting around for a while so I thought I would post it. I know it's been done, but I guess I thought I'd take my turn at it. Enjoy and please review. =)  
><strong>

She had mixed feelings, but now she didn't have a choice. Because when it came right down to it, the decision was made for her. Sure, she could work hard, rip a hole in the fabric of their reality and find him once again, never to leave. But where did that leave _him_?

_He _hadn't done anything wrong, exactly. Sure, genocide wasn't right and the Doctor had good intentions by leaving them together, but she didn't want _him_, she wanted the Doctor.

The Doctor told her they were the same. But were they really?

Rose now sat in a car, withdrawn into her own world, not daring to look at _him_. She was headed to the Tyler mansion, where _he _would likely stay. But not her. No, she would go to her flat and sort out what exactly she wanted to do. Because there were really only three options for her: 1. Rip a whole in the fabric of reality and find the Doctor. 2. Stay in this universe and flee as fast as she could and start a new life or 3. Come to terms with what happened and make a life with this… other Doctor.

Number one was ridiculous and no matter how awful it was for the Doctor to have left, he really was looking out for her best interests. But she hadn't gotten to make the decision. However, number three seemed just as crazy as number one. Could they ever really be the same?

Rose sighed, staring our the window at the clouds and blue sky. She needed sleep. Definitely, before she came to a decision.  
>The car came to a stop and all the doors opened. As soon as they got inside the house, her brother ran into her arms. "Wose!" He jumped into her arms and held on around her neck.<br>"Hey Tony." She smiled and gave him a hug. "I'm going home. I'll see you later, okay?"  
>He nodded and kissed her cheek before jumping down and running to his parents.<br>Rose watched as they smiled and greeted him. Then she watched her mother hug Pete. _How do you do it, mom? He isn't the man you married more than twenty years ago. I dont understand...  
><em>"Rose."  
>The voice made her jump slightly, and she turned to come face to face with <em>him<em>.  
>"Oh, it's you... Well, I'm just headed home so..." She looked away.<br>"Rose, I think maybe we should talk. Since he left, well..."  
>She looked back at him, "Look, I know he meant well, so you don't need to tell me that. I just need to think. I need to go home and think. Mum will find a room for you. We can talk later. It's been a long few days."<br>Watching the look of sadness reach his eyes struck her somewhere deep in her heart. "I'm sorry, I have to."  
>Then he nodded, "But let's talk soon. Please."<br>Rose nodded and then turned to leave. It hurt so much just to look at him. He looked exactly like the Doctor, acted like him too. But he wasn't the same.  
>That night Rose lay in bed trying to decide what to do. He looked oh so much like the Doctor. Maybe if they she just pretended then everything could be like it was. Or at least close to the way it was... She then decided that she would stay, but not because she loved this other Doctor, but because she had to help him. That's what the Doctor had wanted by leaving them together, so she would help him. They would talk and work through the change in him. Her determination was set and the next day she would start. She would turn this <em>other <em>Doctor into the Doctor that she wanted.

The next morning, as early as she dared, she entered the Tyler mansion. She found her way to the kitchen and started a cup of tea. She sat down and sipped the warm liquid.  
>"Rose." She looked up to see Pete standing in the doorway.<br>"Hey." She smiled and he came towards her, pulling out the chair that was beside her.  
>"What's going on inside that head of yours?" He questioned as he settled in to the chair.<br>"I don't know. This just wasn't how I really pictured today being."  
>He nodded but didn't say anything.<br>"I want to help him, really I do. I don't know what it's going to take but I'll help him."_ So he can by the Doctor I want,_ she thought.  
>"He's going to need it, Rose."<br>Rose nodded in agreement.

The hours stretched on until finally the other Doctor entered the room. At first, they both stared at each other and then he pulled up a chair and sat down beside her.  
>"We need to talk." Rose said.<p>

The days passed and with each day Rose felt like they were making progress. But he was still leaps and bounds from who she wanted him to be. The Doctor _she _knew. The one who had forced her to stay here with _him. _She didn't desire being with him because every moment hurt. Every look into his eyes was like looking into the face of the man who had abandoned here just so she could pretend what she had was the same. But it wasn't and it hurt. Maybe this other Doctor wasn't so angry anymore but he acted different. At times she would catch him staring at her and her heart would leap. She _wanted _to be with him. Then she realized who he was and swiped the thought from her mind. Three weeks passed and it was only getting harder to look into the face of the man she loved and have a varied personality come out when he spoke.

That night Rose brushed her teeth, pulled on some sweats and a tank top and curled under her comforter. As she lay thinking over the day, she wondered if she would ever be able to start a life with this other doctor. But she was sure, as she feel to sleep, that the answer was no. He reminded her too much of her doctor, and they were so similar, but not the same. The only real option she had was to leave. Because by leaving, she wouldn't have to deal with a single emotion that would be put into play by staying with someone so similar to her Doctor.  
>So by the time the sun rose the next morning, her mind was made up. She was leaving.<p>

**Thanks for reading! Please review!**


	2. Rain or Shine

**Hey! Second Chapter. I like this one. Let me know what you think.  
><strong>

Rose had letters to write. She was packed and ready to leave this life. She had tried to make this world work, but now that she was alone she had goodbye letters to write. She would tell her mother goodbye and then hand over three letters. One for Pete. One for her mum. And one for Tony, when he was older. She wasn't sure if she wanted to be remembered by Tony, especially if it would cause him pain. But she would leave her mother with that job. With those letters written, along with a resignation at Torchwood, she had one left to write. To the other doctor.  
>After more than an hour of trying to write, she finally had a finished product she was happy with.<br>Then she climbed into her car, locked up her empty flat and drove to her parents' mansion. When she arrived she wanted to be quick. She found her mum and Pete together in the library.  
>"Mum?" She questioned, opening the door and closing it quietly behind her.<br>Her mother looked up and smiled, "Hey sweetheart."  
>"I'm leaving, mum." Rose said, sitting down next to her mum.<br>"What do you mean?"  
>"I mean, I want to leave and start over. You can think of it as what would have happened if I had stayed in the other universe. But I don't want to stay here. Not with h-" She caught herself and stopped.<br>"Honey, he's different, yes. But deep down, he's the same. You just have to give it some time."  
>They heard thunder and then the rain outside picked up.<br>"He isn't mom, and looking at him will just remind me of the Doctor. It's different. We won't travel and he's not the same person, he's half Donna for goodness sake. I can't stay and endure the pain of having to try to work through that."  
>"Rose, it's hard, yes. But there are so many good times, they outweigh the pain it takes to get there." Her mother was pleading.<br>"Mum, my mind is made up. I just came here to say goodbye. I wrote letters for all of you." Then she stood up and hugged her mother before turning to Pete. "Goodbye, Pete. You've really been like a father to me."  
>"I love you, Rose. You've always seemed like a daughter." He hugged her tight. "I won't try and change your mind, but your mother is right. It's hard, but very worth it."<br>Rose just smiled sadly. "I'll tell Tony goodbye and be on my way." She handed them three letters then turned to leave.  
>Tony was down for a nap and Rose had to tell him goodbye as he slept. "Goodbye, Tony. I love you." She kissed him on the forehead and watched him sleep before finally getting up. On her way out, she peeked into the kitchen trying to find <em>him. <em>He happened to be sitting at the table with a cup of tea. He looked up when she entered. "I heard you say you were leaving."  
>Rose hadn't wanted him to know. She wanted to give him the letter and walk away. "Yes, I am. Sorry. But I wrote this for you." She placed the letter on the table After a pause she looked toward the door. "I best be off." She started walking toward the door.<br>"Rose, wait." His voice was so soft and gentle, just like the Doctor.  
>She hesitated and turned back. He was standing inches away. "Please, don't go."<br>"I'm sorry. I can't... I can't stay." The tears she had held in after the Doctor's departure suddenly spilled over.  
>He wanted to say more, she could tell, but she wouldn't let him. She rushed out the door, into the rain and into her car.<p>

The Doctor watched her leave. He wasn't the same, but he was still the Doctor, just like he was when he regenerated before, only he looked the same this time. He didn't want her to leave, it hurt so bad. But he choose to read the letter first.  
>There was no name on the envelope and he pulled out the letter. There was no title or name, just words straight from Rose's heart.<br>_  
>I'm so sorry but I have to leave. I can't possibly stay here with the constant reminder of what I lost. It would be better for me to start over, so don't come looking for me. I want this. It may seem rash and stupid, but this is something I need. I hope you can find a life for yourself. Torchwood now has an opening.<br>Don't hate me, please don't hate me. I just can't stand to be with you after the Doctor left. You are so much alike that it hurts. Really hurts. I'm sorry for anything that happened these weeks that made you think there could be something between us. You just look so much like him.  
>I'm so sorry. I don't know what else to say. I didn't mean to hurt you, but deep down I know I have. Please find someone. Someone who will make you happy. Start a life with her and grow old together. So you see, once you follow my instructions I will have to leave. Because we can't be together. I have to leave instead of staying and watching you fall in love with someone else, because I couldn't possibly bear it.<br>Rose_

That was it. The Doctor felt his heart drop. She wanted him to find someone else? Didn't she know there was no one else?  
>As a new feeling of being sick to his stomach came over him, he rushed to the library to ask for a car. Jackie didn't understand why he needed it and asked a lot of questions, but Pete led him outside and handed over a set of keys.<br>Thanking him quickly, he jumped into the car and headed down the road. He didn't know how far she had gone but he knew what direction she had gone in. He hoped she hadn't gotten far. The rain was pouring harder with every second, and he needed to talk to her.

Rose couldn't see. It wasn't the rain. She had the highest quality windshield wipers available and she was going slow. Her face was streaked in tears and her eyes were bleary. He hadn't wanted her to leave which made it hurt worse. He really thought they could be happy together. Rose pulled over on the side of the road and turned off her car. She leaned her head against the steering wheel and cried. She needed to leave and get away, but she didn't want to be in a wreck. Although, she certainly was a wreck. A basket case, really.  
>He had looked so devastated. <em>Why am I doing this again? <em>She questioned herself. _I could always pretend... they look identical. We could be happy ,if I just pretend.  
><em>She wasn't sure how long she sat in her car crying, but suddenly she could see a car's headlights behind her and her heart rate picked up. She didn't have her lights on and she didn't want to get hit. But before she could do anything, the car pulled up behind her and parked. _Is that Pete... _Her thoughts trailed as she watched the door open. Out of the car came the one man she desperately wanted to avoid. "No..." She muttered, trying to think of what to do.  
>Suddenly he was at her door. She vaguely thought about locking the car or driving off, but not before he opened the door and stood in front of her, rain pouring onto him, soaking him to the bone.<br>"Rose. Don't leave."

She was crying, he could tell. Her make up was streaked and she had been parked on the side of the road, leaning against her steering wheel. Her eyes were puffy and she looked like she was in a daze, staring at him. She didn't answer him, just stared with her head cocked to one side as if trying to decide if he was safe.  
>"Stay here. I know I'm not exactly like the Doctor you knew before you came here, but its still me. Just like he's not like the man you first knew when you met the Doctor. I am the Doctor, Rose. And if you don't love me, then fine. But I know that day on the beach, I know what you said. I even told you what I was thinking. So why leave when we can have such a bright future?" He had to shout over the pouring rain. Finally, she responded with a blunt, loud laugh.<br>"No! You think we have a bright future! Look around!" She said, looking at the rain that fell around them and the dark skies. "That's all our future entails!" She pointed up, then she stood and shut her car door behind her so they were face to face, being soaked by the rain.  
>"You can't be serious Rose, it's WEATHER! IT changes! At first it might be dark and stormy, but it is going to change. It will be bright and sunny and beautiful before you know it. That doesn't mean it won't rain again, but next time we'll know for sure that the sun will come out again!" They were shouting, louder than was necessary, but she was being ridiculous!<br>She shook her head, having no response to what he said. "This wasn't what I wanted!" She shouted. "I didn't have a choice! He left me! He gives aliens he doesn't even know a choice! He _always _gives _them _a choice! So why not me! He left me without a choice, thinking that by taking away my options, we would be happy! But you know what!" She shouted as her hair lost all of its volume in the rain.  
>"What!" He had an idea what she was going to say, but he wanted to know her exact thought process.<br>"I do have a choice! By leaving, I can give myself a happy ending! You can be happy with someone else!"  
>"You didn't get a <em>choice<em>?" He shouted back, anger raging through him. "Thats what this is about?"  
>"Of course! I wanted to travel with him forever! I loved him and he..." She turned away for a second before turning back. "He left me and made the decision for me!"<br>"Oh, and I suppose you think _I _had a choice in all this, huh?" He questioned.

Rose took a step back. She hadn't really thought about what _he _wanted. It was all about what the Doctor had done to her. But really, it was what he had done to both of them. By taking away their options, he was hoping to push them together, not break them apart. Rose began shaking her head, the sobs coming over her.  
>The man in front of her seemed to soften some. He claimed to be the Doctor and...maybe he was.<br>He took her in his arms and hugged her. "What are you afraid of?" He whispered right into her ear, loud enough that she could hear.  
>"What if the storm never goes away?" She looked up at him.<br>"It will." He whispered. "It's weather. It changes."  
>She cried, but this time it was more of a laugh at his response than truly sad tears. Then she looked up. "What you said at the beach... You weren't just talking for him...?"<br>He shook his head. "We're the same person, Rose. Not only do I know what he was going to say, but it's what I've always wanted to say to you. Rose Tyler, I love you."  
>Rose realized, as she looked into his eyes, that he was telling the truth.<p>

She seemed to have given up all of her determination to leave with each droplet of rain that hit her skin and each of his words that pierced her heart. He wasn't sure how long it would take for her to call him Doctor again, but it didn't matter. She seemed to realize that maybe they really could be happy, and that's all he really wanted.  
>"Rose. I am going to give you a choice now. It's your choice and I won't make it for you, but you have to promise to be happy with your decision."<br>She didn't answer, but she was listening. He was giving her something that the other Doctor hadn't.  
>"You can leave. You wrote your letters and said your goodbyes and you can really leave and start your own life, all on your own." He wanted to add that he would never love anyone, never do domestic if he couldn't do it with her, but he wasn't about to use guilt to help her make the decision. "Or, you can stay."<br>Her eyes told him that she had practically made her decision and she clung to him all the more. "I... I want to sta-"  
>"Wait." He stopped her, a small smile playing on his lips. "But if you stay, then it's going to be forever. We aren't going to just 'try' a relationship. We've been together too long for that. If you stay, then we're going to get married and I promise to do domestic with you. But I want it to be forever and I wont stand for anything else. Because I can give you that, Rose. Forever."<br>A smile lifted on her lips and she nodded. "Alright, then I choose to stay. I promise to get married to you and teach you the ways of being domestic. As long as you promise me one thing."  
>The Doctor felt himself smile. He had almost lost her- again. But now she wanted to stay. She hadn't said she loved him, but it would take her some time to get used to who he was now, just like last time. "Anything."<br>She turned serious, "I need you to be patient with me while we wait for the storm to pass."  
>He nodded, pulling her closer. "I promise."<br>Then, in the pouring rain, on the side of the road, they sealed their promise with a kiss. A forever kiss.

**Thanks for reading! Please review!**


	3. Blurred Lines

**Hey! Here ya are!  
><strong>

The warm blanket around her shoulders didn't stop the shivering. The shivering wasn't just from the freezing rain, but from the sudden change of events. How had she let him talk her out of leaving? But when she looked at him and he smiled at her, she knew that deep down he was the same.  
>She sneezed and pulled the blanket tighter. What had she almost done? They were really going to have forever. She didn't know how long it would take for her to stop being angry at the Doctor for leaving her, but this other Doctor was in the same boat she was. And that was one of the reasons she wanted to stay. Neither of them had a choice. So why make themselves miserable when they could just be together? It was the Doctor's loss, really, he had left them.<br>When they returned to the mansion, soaking wet, Rose's mum had given her one look and then walked back out of the room to find towels and blankets for them. They still had a lot to talk through, but soon they would get married. Such an odd thought. Would he really get married? To her?  
>Her thoughts turned back to the Doctor. Why had he left them? It really was his loss, but why did he force them, not let them make their own decision?<br>She looked up to see him smiling at her as he walked towards her with a cup of tea. She smiled back.  
>He sat down beside her and handed her a cup of tea. She took it and curled up next to him.<br>"What's wrong?" He asked, seeming to feel her tenseness.  
>"Nothing. It will just take a little time for me to get used to this... it's different."<br>He nodded, "But you're angry. Why?"  
>She sighed, "The Doctor, he... why didn't he let us decide if this is what we wanted?"<br>"Well, do you think we won't be happy?" He asked her slowly.  
>She looked up at him. "Well... I think we can be, but... He should have let us decide."<br>"Would you have chosen me?" He looked straight to her soul and she could see the raw pain in his eyes.  
>"Well... I don't know. But at least you gave me a choice. I could have walked away from you and you never would have come after me. You would have respected that."<br>"Then why be angry at him? It's his loss. We can be happy together, forever."  
>She slowly let her frown slacken and then began to smile. "I suppose you're right."<br>"Of course I am. I'm always right." He grinned at her and she just laughed.

The next day the weather was better outside, but the clouds still hung over Rose's head. But the days passed and with each one the sun seemed to come out more and more. Rose began laughing again. She was off of work for the time being, spending her time rebuilding her relationship. She wasn't sure when it happened, but she slowly began to stop thinking of him as her 'other' Doctor, the lines blurred and she started thinking of his as the only Doctor she had ever known. She no longer denied that he loved her. Of course he did, he showed her every day.  
>Several weeks later they sat together outside at a park on the swings. "Push me, please!" Rose smiled, trying to get him to do her will. Her smile worked and he positioned himself behind her before beginning to push her, farther with each swing. Eventually she was going so high, she was holding on for dear life. "Let me down!" She laughed.<br>"I don't think so." He grinned and pushed her higher.  
>"No! Please!" She screeched. "Doctor, let me down!"<br>The next time she came down he didn't push her again, but let her swing slow down. He stood staring at her.  
>"What?" she asked, as the swing came to a stop.<br>"You called me Doctor..." He still stared.  
>"Yes..." She drug the word out. "That's who you are."<br>"That's... that's the first time you've called me that since we've been here. I always thought..." He didn't finish his sentence.  
>"What? You've always thought what?" He stood right in front of her and she still sat at the swing.<br>"I always thought you never really thought of me as the Doctor, but rather a look-alike that you would learn to love."  
>She shook her head, "I may have had to get used to you, but you're the Doctor. Of course you are. Regeneration doesn't change that."<br>"But... you always thought I was a clone you never..."  
>"Doctor. I'm sorry I waited this long to call you Doctor but... I admit I didn't think of you as the Doctor before. You were the 'other' Doctor. Or just <em>him<em>. But I love you and I couldn't imagine a day going by without thinking of you as the Doctor. My Doctor."  
>He grinned and then sunk to one knee in front of her, before reaching into his pocket.<br>"What are you doing?" She asked suspiciously, her heart pounding.  
>"I'm doing this right, aren't I?" He whispered, holding a velvet box in front of her. Then he opened it. Inside sat a plain gold band. "Rose, I told you the day that you planned on leaving that you were only to stay if we really go forever together. I told you we would get married and you agreed, but we weren't engaged, Rose. Well, not really. But I didn't want to finalize this until I knew. But I know now. You don't think of me as second best or a replacement, but rather you truly think of me as who I've always been to you. I also promised you that you would always have a choice. so here is my question for you to decide, rather than me. Take back what I've said before, you really can choose." He smiled, looking right into her eyes. "Will you marry me?"<br>For the longest moment, Rose thought she was dreaming. He was just joking and soon he would stand up and tell her so. The Doctor didn't get _married_. And certainly not to her. But the longer he sat there and the more his smile faded, she realized it was real, and more importantly, he was waiting for an answer.  
>"No." She replied.<br>"No?" He looked confused and slightly hurt.  
>She couldn't help but laugh, which added to his hurt expression. "I'm sorry!" She took his free hand with both of hers. "No, you aren't a replacement or second best and yes. Yes, I will marry you. Because I already said I would."<br>"Tomorrow?" He asked, a grin lighting up his face.  
>She laughed. "Sure, tomorrow. We better buy a dress and bake a cake, oh, and buy a house! Oh, and you need a job!" She started to look worried and then it was his turn to laugh.<br>"Rose." He said calmly. She looked back up at him. "I already have a flat picked out for us. We can't afford a house, not yet. But I have a flat picked out and we can keep working at Torchwood together until I can buy you a real house. I've submitted for us to get a marriage certificate. I really hoped you would say yes." He smiled.  
>"Oh my goodness." She smiled. "You really did think of everything."<br>"So all we need is a dress and a cake."  
>Rose nodded, "Oh, and one more thing."<br>"What?"  
>"A sunny day." She grinned.<p>

**Thanks for reading! Please review! **Let me know if you want me to keep going with this story or not... **  
><strong>


	4. A Sunny Day

**Hey! Very short update, but if I dont keep this story rolling, I'll forget about it!  
><strong>

Rose couldn't believe what was about to happen. She was really getting married. They didn't want a lot of people, so it was really the easiest wedding. She had found a simple white dress and her mother, though frantic and complaining they needed a big wedding, had taken care of getting a few flowers and a cake. The attendance would be Pete, her mum, Tony as their ring bearer and a few people they knew from working at Torchwood.  
>As the music began, Rose took a deep breath. Pete offered her his arm and she took it. The backyard of her parents' mansion was large enough for the small gathering. She took one slow step after another. When she stopped focusing on her feet and finally looked up, the sight made her heard pound faster. There he was: her Doctor standing in a suit that she had become so familiar with. His eyes were on her and his smile made it hard to breath. When they finally reached the front, Pete was asked who gave her in marriage. After the typical, 'Her mother and I' he handed her to the Doctor.<br>When they stood in front of the twenty people present and exchanged their vows, Rose wondered if it was really happening. Was she really getting her forever?  
>By the end, when the minister finally announced them, 'Mr. and Mrs John Smith', she was sure it was real. Because she couldn't have possibly dreamed up the look in his eyes as they walked back down the aisle to their reception inside the mansion.<p>

Later that evening they sat together eating their cake. Once it was finished, Rose leaned up against her _husband_, she smiled at the word, and held up her hand to admire the simple gold band. "I like it. Simple and won't be easily broken. With our job, thats hard to find." She grinned as she looked up at him. He smiled down at her.  
>"Look." He took her hand and pulled the ring off of her finger and then held it close to her face. It took her a few minutes, but she finally made out what it said. 'Forever.' "I didn't notice that before." She said, looking more closely. "That's kind of funny, really. I planned to do that to yours." She grinned as she looked at him. "Obviously, I didn't have time."<br>He slid the ring back on her finger and held her hand, "I think we'll have plenty of time in the span of forever."  
>"You're right. Because Forever is a very long time."<p>

**Thanks for reading! Please review!   
><strong>


	5. Confusion

**Hey! Sorry for any errors. I didn't want to proof read, so it's really my fault. But I think I got a lot of things going well. Anyone interested in beta reading?**

"Guess what!" The Doctor's grin was across his whole face. "It's time for another adventure, and there will probably be a lot of running! Are you ready?"  
>Rose laughed, "It's a good think I stay fit, or I'd never be able to keep up with you. What is it?" she questioned, as he pulled her to her feet.<br>"Well, there's a school where the kids are having hallucinations. Every single one of them. We're off to find out why. It's only effecting the children, not the teachers.  
>"Well then, we better be off."<br>"Thats what I was thinking, so get the team, and lets go!" He led the way as they went to meet up with the rest of their Torchwood team.  
>They had been married for nearly six months and it never got old. They had spent two weeks traveling after their wedding and had moved into their new flat only after they got back. Life settled into a normal rythm, and one thing Rose noticed was that it was never boring. The Doctor groaned about anything domestic, but when it came to it he was just glad to do it with her. He still struggled with anger on occasion, but she had really softened him. He seemed to remember his determination to save as many as possible.<p>

They arrived at the school and Rose was surprised to find that it was a newer building. "Doctor," She grabbed her husbands arm.

"Yes, Rose?" He bent down to listen to her.

"This is a new building."

"Yes, great observation." He grinned at her and she pushed him in the chest. "Whenever a new building goes up and then shortly thereafter we get a call, there is room for suspicion."

"We always have to have suspicion with a job like this. Now come on!" He grabbed her hand and jerked her forward.

The sudden movement made her head spin and her stomach lurch. She pulled her hand away. "Ugh, I think I ate something bad..."

The nausea passed and she shook her head, "I'm fine. That was weird."

"Come on, dearest." Her husband taunted.

They traveled through the hallways of the school not making much progress.

"Think! Why would they be having hallucinations. And what of? There were no reports of what the hallucinations were of. All I got is that they were familiar to the halucine-"

"Halucinee?" Rose questioned

He gave her a look. "Yes. The Haluninee thought that what they were seeing was real, like me seeing you right now. But they would get no response."

"Well, lets split up and tell each other if we see anything." Rose suggested.

"Alright, sounds like a plan." He gave her a quick kiss, grinned and then turned and sprinted off down the other corridor.

She laughed and then started walking down the corridor. The odd halucinations made a lot of questions arrise in her head but she looked for a possible source. She turned around, thinking she had heard something and was relieved to see the Doctor standing behind her. "Oh, it's just you. I'm glad."

But he didn't respond and just walked towards her. "Okay, this is when I run." Rose muttered, grabbing her cell phone and dialing her husbands number.

He didn't pick up but she ran as fast as she could. She wove down several different hallways until what she saw in front of her stopped her in her tracks. A big blue, police box, like one that was used several decades ago. One exactly like the Tardis. She didn't have time to thinkof the apparition that had apparently chased her before a 'ha!' sounded and she turned around and the appirition faded, with the doctor standing there with an odd device in his hands.

"There you are! Why didn't you answer your phone?" She said, crossing her arms. "We had an agreement, you know. Phones on at all times." She tried to look stern, but was relieved to see him.

But he just stood there and stared at her, a quizzical look on his face. "Doctor, it's really mean, not a halucination. You're not the halucinee." She winked and laughed. Still, he stared.

"Rose?" He whispered her name and then it was her turn to stare.

"Of course it's me! We've been married nearly seven months, I would think you could remember the name of your wife."

That seemed to be the magic words, because he straightened and grinned. "Right! Of course! How could I forget?" Something was off though, he was acting strange and she was still wondering about the blue box behind her. That's when realization dawned. "You're not..." She started backing away, her hand pressed against her lips.

"Yes... not sure how I ended up here but..." His voice trailed off. "Are you happy?"

She stared at him, unsure how to answer. He seemed so foreign to her. She had become so used to her Doctor, that this 'real' Doctor seemed more of an 'other' than her husband had at the beginning.

Then she slowly nodded, "Yes, we've had several sunny days. But we haven't gone without the rainy ones or cloudy days. The sunny days just give us hope during the downpour." He didn't understand, but pretended to, like always, nodding. "Yes, we're happy. He gave me something you didn't!" She raised her voice unintentionally.

"What?" He questioned, his voice still soft.

"A choice." She choked out. "I never had a choice when you left. Neither did he. So I made my own choice. My only way to be free and live with my own choices was to leave. So I left, I fully intended to move right out of his life and my familys just weeks after you left. Then he stopped me and gave me a choice. I could do what I wanted, leave everything I knew and make myself a new life. Or, I could build a life with him. Obviously, I chose the latter. We were married months ago."

He nodded. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"What?" She questioned, desperate not to let any emotion show.

"I should have given you a choice. I assumed and I made the choices. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. But I desperately wanted you to be happy. We couldn't have what you have with him."

"No, but you could have let me come to that conclusion." She shouted.

"Rose?" She heard the other Doctor, no, _her _Doctor shout her name and knew he had heard the commotion and was coming.

"Rose, the problem here is fixed. Again, I'm sorry." He was about to leave but hesitated.

"Rose?" The voice of her Doctor grew louder.

The Doctor before her was about to turn and saunter into his Tardis, leaving her again she was sure. But then her grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her to him.

She melted into his embrace, letting him kiss her and even returning the kiss. He was so much like her husband. In her head she knew she should pull back, but her heart couldn't tell the difference, even after months without this man. Her husband had been right all along, they were the same person.

"Rose?" The voice of her husband startled her back into reality, he was close and she knew she had been caught. She pushed the other Doctor several feet away and turned from him. In her peripheral vision she could see her husband, but she had turned her back on his counterpart. Her heart was pounding. She didn't know what to say and she felt like crying. She didn't want this. She just wanted her husband. Why did she have to get so confused? Why did _he _ have to kiss her? She should have known better.

"Rose?" She felt arms around her and wanted to sink into the embrace but couldn't. She had no idea whose arms they where. She pushed away, noticing for the first time the tears that filled her eyes.

She stared at the two men and then she sunk into her husbands arms, letting the tears come. "I'm sorry..." She whispered. "I'm so sorry..."

The Doctor held his sobbing wife, pulling her close while she let her her emotions out. He had wondered what she had done with all of her feelings toward this Doctor, the _real _Doctor. He briefly wondered if she still thought of him that way but knew she must. He had always been the other Doctor. When he had come down the hallway to find his wife kissing his counterpart, in a full fledged embrace. One she only shared with him.

He wanted to be sympathetic and compassionate toward her, really he did but he knew she had always wanted the real Doctor. He had always been second best. It was a stretch for her to even have called him Doctor all those months ago. When there was only one of them, sure she could identify him as the Doctor. But what now with the real man standing only a few feet away?

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." She whispered and his heart felt like it was breaking. She sounded so much like him.

He looked over her head at his counterpart. The man stood there, with a sorrowful look on his face.

Rose clung to her husband even after the tears dried up and her sobbing subsided. Nothing had evoked so much emotion in her in a very long time She was afraid of her husbands reaction but was glad he was holding her. She dried her eyes and looked up into the dark eyes that she had come to love over years of being with this man. He stared down at her and she knew for certain that they were going to be having a talk later. She hoped they wouldn't argue but was sure it was inevitable.

She pulled away from him and stared at the Doctor she had known before any of this had happened. He stood, looking ready to leave. "I'm sorry, I should go now."

"No." The Doctor, Rose's husband, spoke up before she could say a word. She was glad. "You'll come stay with us."

The other Doctor hesitated but nodded. "Give me the address and I'll fly the Tardis there."

The Doctor rattled off their address and the other Doctor climbed into the Tardis.

They walked in silence down the hall back to their car. Silence enveloped them the whole way home. They were tense all evening. When the other Doctor finally said he would go to bed, Rose knew a storm was coming.

"Rose, we need to talk."

"I know." Rose agreed, rushing forward. "What you saw, I didn't... he started... I-"

"Rose, I know. You wanted him all along. I was always second best."

"No, that's no true-"

"Yes, it is true! you think you would hang onto someone like you did if you didn't love the man?" His voice rose and hers escalated as well.

"No! Excuse me if my heart and mind were having a battle! It's a little hard to think when someone _identical _to your husband is kissing you!"

"Oh, so lets just return the affections when you husband is calling your name, coming upon you to find you _clinging _to another man!"

"He's you! Or you're him! Whatever!" She shouted, frustrated. She put her hands over her face.

"I thought we already agreed we were different!"

"But you're still the same!"

"Then why don't you go off to be with him!"

Rose pulled her hands from her face and stared at the stormy eyes of her husband. After silence lengthened into minutes Rose whispered, "You don't mean that."

He sunk to the chair in their living room, leaning forward, putting his head in his hands, with his elbows resting on his knees. "I want you to be with him, like you always wanted."

Rose approached her husband tentatively, "No you don't. I didn't mean for it to happen, Doctor. It just did and my senses where so jumbled... I couldn't believe her was there and I just went with what felt right. But it was wrong."

"But it's what you wanted." He looked straight into her eyes and she had a sharp intake of breath at the look he gave her.

"No. It's not. I want you. I married you. Why would I marry you so that the first chance I get to be with another man, I take it?"

"It's not just another man, Rose, and you know it!" Their voices were rising again, but neither of them cared.

"We made our promise that day in the rain. Or did you forget?" Rose shouted at her husband.

"No, I didn't forget! But I gave you a choice. I've been giving you choices ever since we started out here!"

"And I've made my choices, ones I don't regret!" Rose insisted, hoping she was being truthful.

"Then I'll give you another choice Rose!"

"Fine!" She agreed.

"You need to choose. Do you want me? Or do you want to go to your universe and be with him and travel that universe?"

The Doctor sighed. He had been listening to Rose fighting with her husband for the past hour. They had gone around in circles for a long time before they brought it all back around to him. He knew it was his fault that they were arguing and he regretted it. But he wanted so badly to spend just a little but of time with Rose, like they used to. He now knew it was impossible but he wanted to fix what he had done.

He hoped he would be able to.

**Again, thanks for reading. =) Review?  
><strong>


End file.
